Plans For Coalignment And Cophasing Of The Optics In The 15-M National New Technology Telescope (NNTT)

The NNTT concept is a multiple mirror type telescope consisting of an array of four 7.5-meter diameter telescopes which are coaligned and cophased by means of an internal optical metering device. As a result, the NNTT acts like a single telescope with a 15-meter collecting diameter and a 21-meter resolution diameter. This paper describes this coalignment/ cophasing system.